Systems and methods for EMS navigation user interface

ABSTRACT

A method for interfacing with a user of an EMS navigation system according to embodiments of the present invention includes displaying on a device screen a series of display screens that are navigationally linked by a series of navigation buttons, wherein the series of display screens comprises a home screen, and wherein each display screen of the series of display screens comprises a home button linking to the home screen, wherein each navigation button of the series of navigation buttons appearing in a display screen of the series of display screens is larger than any other buttons in the display screen, and wherein each navigation button of the series of navigation buttons appearing on the display screen of the series of display screens is adjacent to a left edge or a right edge of the device screen.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional PatentApplication Ser. No. 61/484,121, filed on May 9, 2011, which isincorporated by reference herein in its entirety for all purposes.

TECHNICAL FIELD

Embodiments of the present invention relate generally to user interfacesystems, and more particularly to user interface systems for emergencymedical services (EMS) navigation systems.

BACKGROUND

Current user interface systems for EMS devices typically include rathersmall navigation buttons spread out in various locations on the user'sscreen. For workers in the EMS field, particularly workers who interactwith patients in a mobile environment, such complicated user interfacesetups with small buttons often require the workers to devote largeramounts of time to finding the correct button, and/or often divert theworkers' attention or vision from the EMS situation (e.g. patient careor driving conditions) to focus on navigating the user interface. Forexample, an ambulance driver who is using an EMS navigation system mayneed to stop the vehicle in order to divert the necessary attention toactivating navigation commands in an EMS navigation device. EMSnavigation interfaces which include small buttons spread out in variouslocations on the user's screen detract the EMS technician's attentionfrom other more valuable targets during an EMS response event.

SUMMARY

A method for interfacing with a user of an EMS navigation systemaccording to embodiments of the present invention includes displaying ona device screen a series of display screens that are navigationallylinked by a series of navigation buttons, wherein the series of displayscreens comprises a home screen, wherein each display screen of theseries of display screens comprises a home button linking to the homescreen, wherein each navigation button of the series of navigationbuttons appearing in a display screen of the series of display screensis substantially the same size and larger than other buttons in thedisplay screen, and wherein each navigation button of the series ofnavigation buttons appearing in the display screen of the series ofdisplay screens is adjacent to a left edge or a right edge of the devicescreen to facilitate use by EMS users.

A method for interfacing with a user of an EMS navigation systemaccording to embodiments of the present invention includes displaying ona device screen a series of display screens that are navigationallylinked by a series of navigation buttons, wherein the series of displayscreens comprises a home screen, wherein each display screen of theseries of display screens comprises a home button linking to the homescreen, wherein each navigation button of the series of navigationbuttons appearing in a display screen of the series of display screensis larger than any other buttons in the display screen, and wherein eachnavigation button of the series of navigation buttons appearing on thedisplay screen of the series of display screens is adjacent to a leftedge or a right edge of the device screen. A user may toggle or cyclethrough two or more of the series of display screens by selecting atoggle button which has a same position on the device screen in each ofthe two or more of the series of display screens.

A method for interfacing with a user of an EMS navigation systemaccording to embodiments of the present invention includes receiving anincident assignment from a dispatcher corresponding to an EMS incident,displaying an easy response button with a device touchscreen, whereinthe easy response button has an area substantially as large as thedevice touchscreen, detecting a user's touch on the easy response buttonon the device touchscreen, and based on the detection of the user'stouch, updating a status of the EMS navigation system to indicate thatresponse is being made.

The method of the previous paragraph, further including, based on thedetection of the user's touch, automatically displaying a map with aroute to a target destination corresponding to the EMS incident.

The method of the either of the previous two paragraphs, whereinupdating a status of the EMS navigation system to indicate that responseis being made includes starting a response timer.

The method of any of the of the previous three paragraphs, whereindisplaying the easy response button includes displaying a timerindicating a time since the incident assignment was received from thedispatcher.

The method of any of the previous four paragraphs, wherein displayingthe easy response button includes displaying a nature of the EMSincident.

The method of any of the previous five paragraphs, wherein displayingthe easy response button includes displaying a location of the EMSincident.

A system for EMS navigation according to embodiments of the presentinvention includes a touch screen display device, the touch screendisplay device configured to display information related to EMSnavigation and to accept tactile input from a user, the touch screenconfigured to display a series of display screens that arenavigationally linked by a series of navigation buttons, wherein theseries of display screens comprises a home screen, wherein each displayscreen of the series of display screens comprises a home button linkingto the home screen, wherein each navigation button of the series ofnavigation buttons appearing in a display screen of the series ofdisplay screens is larger than any other buttons on the display screen,and wherein each navigation button of the series of navigation buttonsappearing in the display screen of the series of display screens isadjacent to a left edge or a right edge of the device screen.

While multiple embodiments are disclosed, still other embodiments of thepresent invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art fromthe following detailed description, which shows and describesillustrative embodiments of the invention. Accordingly, the drawings anddetailed description are to be regarded as illustrative in nature andnot restrictive.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates a system for mobile and enterprise user real-timedisplay of medical information collected from multiple different EMSdevices, according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 2 illustrates an exemplary computer system, according toembodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 3 depicts a flow diagram illustrating an activation of responsestatus through use of an easy response button, according to embodimentsof the present invention.

FIG. 4 illustrates a navigational linking relationship between displayscreens of an EMS navigation device, according to embodiments of thepresent invention.

FIG. 5 illustrates an easy response button display screen, according toembodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 6 illustrates a home screen of an EMS navigation system, accordingto embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 7 illustrates a first dispatch screen of an EMS navigation system,according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 8 illustrates a second dispatch screen of an EMS navigation system,according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 9 illustrates a third dispatch screen of an EMS navigation system,according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 10 illustrates a fourth dispatch screen of an EMS navigationsystem, according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 11 illustrates a fifth dispatch screen of an EMS navigation system,according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 12 illustrates a first easy response screen of an EMS navigationsystem, according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 13 illustrates a second easy response screen of an EMS navigationsystem, according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 14 illustrates a third easy response screen of an EMS navigationsystem, according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 15 illustrates a work screen of an EMS navigation system, accordingto embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 16 illustrates a work selection screen of an EMS navigation system,according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 17 illustrates a chat messaging screen of an EMS navigation system,according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 18 illustrates a chat messaging details screen of an EMS navigationsystem, according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 19 illustrates a chat messaging editor screen of an EMS navigationsystem, according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 20 illustrates a second menu screen of an EMS navigation system,according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 21 illustrates a weather screen of an EMS navigation system,according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 22 illustrates a unit crew screen of an EMS navigation system,according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 23 illustrates a system alerts screen of an EMS navigation system,according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 24 illustrates a third menu screen of an EMS navigation system,according to embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 25 illustrates a system settings screen of an EMS navigationsystem, according to embodiments of the present invention.

While the invention is amenable to various modifications and alternativeforms, specific embodiments have been shown by way of example in thedrawings and are described in detail below. The intention, however, isnot to limit the invention to the particular embodiments described. Onthe contrary, the invention is intended to cover all modifications,equivalents, and alternatives falling within the scope of the inventionas defined by the appended claims.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As illustrated in FIG. 1, a system 100 according to embodiments of thepresent invention performs advanced data management, integration andpresentation of EMS data from multiple different devices. System 100includes a mobile environment 101, an enterprise environment 102, and anadministration environment 103. Devices within the various environments101, 102, 103 may be communicably coupled via a network 120, such as,for example, the Internet. System 100 is further described in PatentCooperation Treaty Application Publication No. WO 2011/011454, publishedon Jan. 27, 2011, which is incorporated herein by reference in itsentirety for all purposes.

As used herein, the phrase “communicably coupled” is used in itsbroadest sense to refer to any coupling whereby information may bepassed. Thus, for example, communicably coupled includes electricallycoupled by, for example, a wire; optically coupled by, for example, anoptical cable; and/or wirelessly coupled by, for example, a radiofrequency or other transmission media. “Communicably coupled” alsoincludes, for example, indirect coupling, such as through a network, ordirect coupling.

According to embodiments of the present invention, the mobileenvironment 101 is an ambulance or other EMS vehicle—for example avehicular mobile environment (VME). The mobile environment may also bethe local network of data entry devices as well as diagnostic andtherapeutic devices established at time of treatment of a patient orpatients in the field environment—the “At Scene Patient MobileEnvironment” (ASPME). The mobile environment may also be a combinationof one or more of VMEs and/or ASPMEs. The mobile environment may includea navigation device 110 used by the driver 112 to track the mobileenvironment's position 101, locate the mobile environment 101 and/or theemergency location, and locate the transport destination, according toembodiments of the present invention. The navigation device 110 mayinclude a Global Positioning System (“GPS”), for example. The navigationdevice 110 may also be configured to perform calculations about vehiclespeed, the travel time between locations, and estimated times ofarrival. According to embodiments of the present invention, thenavigation device 110 is located at the front of the ambulance to assistthe driver 112 in navigating the vehicle. The navigation device 110 maybe, for example, a RescueNet® Navigator onboard electronic datacommunication system available from Zoll Data Systems of Broomfield,Colo.

As illustrated in FIG. 1, a patient monitoring device 106 and a patientcharting device 108 are also often used for patient care in the mobileenvironment 101, according to embodiments of the present invention. TheEMS technician 114 attaches the patient monitoring device 106 to thepatient 116 to monitor the patient 116. The patient monitoring device106 may be, for example, a defibrillator device with electrodes and/orsensors configured for attachment to the patient 116 to monitor heartrate and/or to generate electrocardiographs (“ECG's”), according toembodiments of the present invention. The patient monitoring device 106may also include sensors to detect or a processor to derive or calculateother patient conditions. For example, the patient monitoring device 106may monitor, detect, treat and/or derive or calculate blood pressure,temperature, respiration rate, blood oxygen level, end-tidal carbondioxide level, pulmonary function, blood glucose level, and/or weight,according to embodiments of the present invention. The patientmonitoring device 106 may be a Zoll E-Series® defibrillator availablefrom Zoll Medical Corporation of Chelmsford, Mass., according toembodiments of the present invention. A patient monitoring device mayalso be a patient treatment device, or another kind of device thatincludes patient monitoring and/or patient treatment capabilities,according to embodiments of the present invention.

The patient charting device 108 is a device used by the EMS technician114 to generate records and/or notes about the patient's 116 conditionand/or treatments applied to the patient, according to embodiments ofthe present invention. For example, the patient charting device 108 maybe used to note a dosage of medicine given to the patient 116 at aparticular time. The patient charting device 108 and/or patientmonitoring device 106 may have a clock, which may be synchronized withan external time source such as a network or a satellite to prevent theEMS technician from having to manually enter a time of treatment orobservation (or having to attempt to estimate the time of treatment forcharting purposes long after the treatment was administered), accordingto embodiments of the present invention. The patient charting device 108may also be used to record biographic and/or demographic and/orhistorical information about a patient, for example the patient's name,identification number, height, weight, and/or medical history, accordingto embodiments of the present invention. According to embodiments of thepresent invention, the patient charting device 108 is a tablet PC, suchas for example the TabletPCR component of the RescueNet® ePCR Suiteavailable from Zoll Data Systems of Broomfield, Colo. According to someembodiments of the present invention, the patient charting device 108 isa wristband or smart-phone such as an Apple iPhone or iPad withinteractive data entry interface such as a touch screen or voicerecognition data entry that may be communicably connected to the BOAdevice 104 and tapped to indicate what was done with the patient 116 andwhen it was done.

The navigation device 110, the charting device 108, and the monitoringdevice 106 are each separately very useful to the EMS drivers 112 andtechnicians 114 before, during, and after the patient transport. A “backof ambulance” (“BOA”) device 104 receives, organizes, stores, anddisplays data from each device 108, 110, 112 to further enhance theusefulness of each device 108, 110, 112 and to make it much easier forthe EMS technician 114 to perform certain tasks that would normallyrequire the EMS technician 114 to divert visual and manual attention toeach device 108, 110, 112 separately, according to embodiments of thepresent invention. In other words, the BOA device centralizes andorganizes information that would normally be de-centralized anddisorganized, according to embodiments of the present invention.

The BOA device 104 is communicably coupled to the patient monitoringdevice 106, the patient charting device 108, and the navigation device110, according to embodiments of the present invention. The BOA device104 is also communicably coupled to a storage medium 118. The BOA device104 may be a touch-screen, flat panel PC, and the storage medium 118 maybe located within or external to the BOA device 104, according toembodiments of the present invention. The BOA device 104 may include adisplay template serving as a graphical user interface, which permitsthe user (e.g. EMS tech 114) to select different subsets and/or displaymodes of the information gathered from and/or sent to devices 106, 108,110, according to embodiments of the present invention.

Some embodiments of the present invention include various steps, some ofwhich may be performed by hardware components or may be embodied inmachine-executable instructions. These machine-executable instructionsmay be used to cause a general-purpose or a special-purpose processorprogrammed with the instructions to perform the steps. Alternatively,the steps may be performed by a combination of hardware, software,and/or firmware. In addition, some embodiments of the present inventionmay be performed or implemented, at least in part (e.g., one or moremodules), on one or more computer systems, mainframes (e.g., IBMmainframes such as the IBM zSeries, Unisys ClearPath Mainframes, HPIntegrity NonStop servers, NEC Express series, and others), orclient-server type systems. In addition, specific hardware aspects ofembodiments of the present invention may incorporate one or more ofthese systems, or portions thereof.

As such, FIG. 2 is an example of a computer system 200 with whichembodiments of the present invention may be utilized. According to thepresent example, the computer system includes a bus 201, at least oneprocessor 202, at least one communication port 203, a main memory 24, aremovable storage media 205, a read only memory 206, and a mass storage207.

Processor(s) 202 can be any known processor, such as, but not limitedto, an Intel® Itanium® or Itanium 2® processor(s), or AMD® Opteron® orAthlon MP® processor(s), or Motorola® lines of processors. Communicationport(s) 203 can be any of an RS-232 port for use with a modem baseddialup connection, a 10/100 Ethernet port, or a Gigabit port usingcopper or fiber, for example. Communication port(s) 203 may be chosendepending on a network such a Local Area Network (LAN), Wide AreaNetwork (WAN), or any network to which the computer system 200 connects.Main memory 204 can be Random Access Memory (RAM), or any other dynamicstorage device(s) commonly known to one of ordinary skill in the art.Read only memory 206 can be any static storage device(s) such asProgrammable Read Only Memory (PROM) chips for storing staticinformation such as instructions for processor 202, for example.

Mass storage 207 can be used to store information and instructions. Forexample, hard disks such as the Adaptec® family of SCSI drives, anoptical disc, an array of disks such as RAID (e.g. the Adaptec family ofRAID drives), or any other mass storage devices may be used, forexample. Bus 201 communicably couples processor(s) 202 with the othermemory, storage and communication blocks. Bus 201 can be a PCI/PCI-X orSCSI based system bus depending on the storage devices used, forexample. Removable storage media 205 can be any kind of externalhard-drives, floppy drives, flash drives, IOMEGA® Zip Drives, CompactDisc-Read Only Memory (CD-ROM), Compact Disc-Re-Writable (CD-RW), orDigital Video Disk-Read Only Memory (DVD-ROM), for example. Thecomponents described above are meant to exemplify some types ofpossibilities. In no way should the aforementioned examples limit thescope of the invention, as they are only exemplary embodiments.

FIG. 3 depicts a flow diagram 300 illustrating an activation of responsestatus through use of an easy response button, according to embodimentsof the present invention. First, a user logs in to the system byproviding information about the individual and/or enteringauthentication or credential information (block 302). At the loginscreen, the user may input, select, or otherwise specify informationsuch as specific company, username, and/or password, according toembodiments of the present invention. The user may be viewing any screenof the navigation device 110 (block 304), and when an incident isassigned to the particular vehicle or crew with which navigation device110 is associated (block 306), the entire screen of the display devicescreen of navigation device 110 may be turned into an easy responsebutton, which is illustrated in FIG. 5. The easy response button screenof FIG. 5 may list the nature of the assigned incident (e.g. “VehicleFire”) and/or the location of the incident (e.g. “Lyon Barbee B” or“Main Street Café”) and/or a time that has elapsed since the incidentwas assigned to the particular crew.

As used herein, the word “screen” is used in some instances to refer tothe physical display device capable of displaying images, for examplethe display device incorporated with navigation system 110 (e.g. “devicescreen”), and in other instances to refer to the image, for example theparticular pattern of colors, buttons, text, arrangement, and/or othervisual appearance, displayed on the device screen (e.g. “displayscreen”). For example, FIGS. 5 through 25 illustrate display screens,while device 110 of FIG. 1 shows a device screen.

The screen of navigation device 110 may be a touch screen device or adevice with similar operational characteristics, to permit tactilegestures to be used to indicate selections on the screen. By touching ortapping anywhere on the screen of FIG. 5, the user activates the easyresponse button (block 308), after which the status of the particularvehicle or crew is set to “en route” or the like (block 310), and thedisplay screen is changed to the easy response screen illustrated inFIG. 12. Although a particular workflow for an incident assignment isdescribed, other workflows may be achieved with navigation device 110.

FIG. 4 illustrates a navigational linking relationship map 400 betweendisplay screens of an EMS navigation device 110, according toembodiments of the present invention. At login screen 402, a user logsin to the system by providing information about the individual and/orentering authentication or credential information. At the login screen402, the user may input, select, or otherwise specify information suchas specific company, username, and/or password, according to embodimentsof the present invention. At the unit crew screen 404, an example ofwhich is illustrated at FIG. 22, the user may specify the vehicle, unit,and/or additional crew members for the unit for which the navigationsystem 110 will receive incident assignments and messages, according toembodiments of the present invention.

At the first menu screen 406, which is illustrated at FIG. 6, a user mayselect additional screens and/or functionality to view. For example, auser may select the Dispatch button to view the dispatch screen(s) ofFIGS. 7 to 11, the Response button to view the easy response screen(s)of FIGS. 12 to 14, the Work button to view the work screen(s) of FIGS.15 and 16, and the Chat Messaging button to view the chat messagingscreen(s) of FIGS. 17 to 19. Clicking on the Next:Menu (Page 2) buttonwill take the user to the second menu screen of FIG. 20.

Clicking on the Dispatch button from the home screen 406 takes the userto the first dispatch screen 408, illustrated in FIG. 7. The screen ofFIG. 7 displays information about incident identifiers and type, and/orthe location for the incident, for example the incident to which theambulance is responding. From this screen 408, clicking on the “NextDispatch” button takes the user to the second dispatch screen 410,illustrated at FIG. 8, which also displays information about theincident identifiers and type, and/or the transport location for theincident. Clicking on the Next Dispatch button from screen 410navigationally links the user to a third dispatch screen 412,illustrated in FIG. 9, which displays notes and alerts for the incident.The notes may include any entries added by dispatch throughout thelifecycle of the particular incident, according to embodiments of thepresent invention. Clicking on the Next Dispatch button from screen 412navigationally links the user to a fourth dispatch screen 414,illustrated in FIG. 10, which displays patient information for thepatient associated with the incident. This may include patientcharacteristics, referring doctor, prior incidents, home address,employer information, and/or payor information, according to embodimentsof the present invention. Clicking on the Next Dispatch button fromscreen 414 takes the user to a fifth dispatch screen 416, illustrated inFIG. 11, which displays all time stamps entered for the incident, and/orduration on each unit status for the incident, according to embodimentsof the present invention.

From the home menu 406, selecting the Response button takes the user toeasy response screen 418, which is illustrated at FIG. 12. Screen 418displays a map with a route to the target destination, including addressand directions. This screen 418 allows for setting time stamps for theincident, viewing alerts, viewing notes, and/or toggling the map view(for example between zooming to the destination location, viewing theentire route, and following the vehicle on the map), according toembodiments of the present invention. According to some embodiments ofthe present invention, the toggle button used to toggle between views isin the same location with respect to the display screen device in eachof the two or three or more views, to facilitate easy and rapid togglingand/or cycling between the various kinds of views, without having tolocate and select a different button for each view. Selecting the Nextbutton from screen 418 takes the user to a second easy response screen420, as illustrated in FIG. 13, which displays a second set of commandsavailable on the easy response screen. These additional commands includeswitching to the dispatch screen 408 to view the incident details(Incident Details button), closing a road on the map, viewing a list ofroad closures, and/or routing to a custom address, according toembodiments of the present invention. Selecting the Next button fromscreen 420 takes the user to a third easy response screen 422,illustrated at FIG. 14, which displays a third set of commands includingspecifying which map layers to display on the map (Map Layers button),toggling traffic overlay on the map (Show Traffic button), and togglingweather overlay on the map (Show Weather button), according toembodiments of the present invention.

From the home menu 406, selecting the Work button takes the user to workscreen 424, illustrated at FIG. 15, which displays a set of incidentsthat have been assigned to the unit throughout the shift, including openand completed incidents, according to embodiments of the presentinvention. Selecting a particular item from the incidents listed onscreen 424 takes the user to work selection screen 426, illustrated atFIG. 16, which shows a summary of the selected incident in the contentarea, and allows the user to navigate to the dispatch screen 408 (ViewFull Details button) to view the full incident details, or to the easyresponse screen 418 (Route to Scene button) showing a route between theunit and the incident location, according to embodiments of the presentinvention.

From the home menu 406, selecting the Chat Messaging button takes theuser to the chat messaging screen 428, illustrated at FIG. 17, whichdisplays a list of facility diversions and textual messages sent toand/or from other units and/or dispatch, according to embodiments of thepresent invention. From screen 428, selecting a particular message fromthe list (e.g. by tapping or clicking on it) takes the user to a chatmessaging details screen 430, illustrated at FIG. 18, which displays thedetails for a chat message including when the message was sent, thesender of the message, the full message text, and/or when the messageexpires (at which time it may be removed from the message list, forexample). Selecting the Compose button from screen 428 takes the user tothe chat messaging editor screen 432, illustrated at FIG. 19, whichdisplays an editor interface for composing a chat message to send,according to embodiments of the present invention.

From the home menu 406, selecting the Next:Menu button takes the user tothe second menu screen 434, which is illustrated at FIG. 20. Pushing theWeather button from screen 434 takes the user to the weather screen 436,illustrated at FIG. 21, which displays the current weather conditionsand/or projected weather conditions for a particular time period orthroughout the day, according to embodiments of the present invention.Pushing the Unit Crew button from screen 434 takes the user to the unitcrew screen 438 illustrated at FIG. 22, which permits the user to changethe vehicle, unit, and additional crew members for the user who islogged in to the system, according to embodiments of the presentinvention. Pushing the Logout button from screen 434 logs out thecurrent user and takes the user to the login screen. Selecting theSystem Alerts button from screen 434 takes the user to the system alertsscreen 442, illustrated at FIG. 23, which displays any system errorsthat have occurred, for example when the user-entered time stamp for anincident was rejected because it was already set by dispatch, accordingto embodiments of the present invention.

From the second menu screen 434, selecting the Next:Menu button takesthe user to the third menu screen 444, as illustrated at FIG. 24,according to embodiments of the present invention. Selecting theNext:Menu button from screen 444 takes the user back to the home screen406. Selecting the System Settings button from screen 444 takes the userto system settings screen 446, illustrated at FIG. 25, which allows theuser to customize the features and behavior of the application. Forexample, when the “Easy Response on Assignment” checkbox is activated(e.g. by clicking on or tapping the checkbox), the user is takenimmediately to the easy response screen 418 as soon as the easy responsebutton (FIG. 5) is activated. The easy response button screen of FIG. 5may be color coded to draw attention to the fact that a new incidentassignment has been received; for example, the easy response buttonscreen of FIG. 5 may be colored bright red or orange.

The display screens described above show the primary navigation buttonsas being of substantially the same size, and/or oriented adjacent to theright side of the screen display device. Activating the “LeftOrientation” checkbox in screen 446 switches the orientation andalignment of the primary navigation buttons from the right side to theleft side of the screen. This may be done for left-handed users, forexample.

Placing the primary navigation buttons against either the right or leftsides of the display screen facilitates user of the interface by EMSusers. This feature permits an EMS user to place one or more fingersonto the physical device containing the display screen, and use his orher thumb to select the primary navigation buttons, which are ratherlarge (and may be larger than any other buttons on the screens, forexample secondary buttons which are not often needed during an incidentresponse). For example, when the navigation buttons are placed adjacentto the right side perimeter of the display screen, a user may place ahand on the side of the device, with the fingers behind the deviceand/or pointed away from the user, while the user uses the thumb of thehand to navigate the menu structure described with respect to FIG. 4,according to embodiments of the present invention. As such, the user canuse the physical device as a reference point, without having tocontinually visually scan the display to find new button placementsand/or to find smaller or more obscure buttons while navigating thescreens or pages. The user knows that somewhere near the bottom right ofthe screen is the lowest button, and somewhere near the top right of thescreen is the highest button. This same setup may be employed by placingthe buttons along the left side of the screen. According to someembodiments, the buttons may be placed adjacent to either the top or thebottom edge of the screen, depending on the placement and orientation ofthe navigation device 110, and the particular user's preferences.

Various modifications and additions can be made to the exemplaryembodiments discussed without departing from the scope of the presentinvention. For example, while the embodiments described above refer toparticular features, the scope of this invention also includesembodiments having different combinations of features and embodimentsthat do not include all of the described features. Accordingly, thescope of the present invention is intended to embrace all suchalternatives, modifications, and variations as fall within the scope ofthe claims, together with all equivalents thereof.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for interfacing with a user of anemergency medical services (EMS) navigation device, the methodcomprising: receiving, at the device, an incident assignment from adispatcher remote from the device, the incident assignment from thedispatcher corresponding to an EMS incident; in response to receivingthe incident assignment from the dispatcher, displaying only an easyresponse button with a touch screen communicably coupled with thedevice, wherein the easy response button captures only an acceptance ofthe incident assignment, has an area substantially as large as the touchscreen, and displays a time that has elapsed since the incidentassignment was received from the dispatcher; detecting a user's touchanywhere on the easy response button on the touch screen; and updating,in response to detecting the user's touch anywhere on the easy responsebutton, a status of the EMS navigation device to indicate that the useris en route to a location associated with the incident assignment. 2.The method of claim 1, further comprising: based on the detection of theuser's touch, automatically displaying a map comprising trafficinformation and a route to a target destination corresponding to the EMSincident.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein updating the status of theEMS navigation device to indicate that response is being made comprisesstarting a response timer.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein the easyresponse button displays a nature of the EMS incident and the locationassociated with the incident assignment.
 5. The method of claim 1,wherein displaying the easy response button comprises displaying anature of the EMS incident.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein displayingthe easy response button comprises displaying the location associatedwith the incident assignment.
 7. The method of claim 1, comprisingdisplaying information exclusive of the easy response button prior tothe receipt of the incident assignment from the dispatcher.
 8. Themethod of claim 7, comprising automatically replacing the informationexclusive of the easy response button with the easy response button inresponse to receiving the incident assignment from the dispatcher. 9.The method of claim 7, comprising: receiving login information from theuser of the EMS navigation device; and in response to receiving thelogin information, displaying the information exclusive of the easyresponse button.
 10. The method of claim 7, wherein displaying theinformation exclusive of the easy response button comprises displayingone or more of unit crew information, dispatch information, a chatmessaging button, and assigned incident information.
 11. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the user's touch anywhere on the easy response buttoncomprises a single touch or tap.
 12. A system for emergency medicalservices (EMS) navigation, the system comprising: an EMS navigationdevice configured to receive an incident assignment from a dispatcherremote from the EMS navigation device, the incident assignment from thedispatcher corresponding to an EMS incident; and a touch screen displaydevice communicably coupled to the EMS navigation device, the EMSnavigation device being configured to, in response to the receipt of theincident assignment from the dispatcher display only an easy responsebutton with the touch screen display device, wherein the easy responsebutton captures only an acceptance of the incident assignment, has anarea substantially as large as the touch screen display device, anddisplays a time that has elapsed since the incident assignment wasreceived from the dispatcher, detect a user's touch anywhere on the easyresponse button on the touch screen display device, and update, inresponse to the detection of the user's touch anywhere on the easyresponse button, a status of the system for EMS navigation to indicatethat a user is en route to a location associated with the incidentassignment.
 13. The system of claim 12, wherein the EMS navigationdevice is configured to, based on the detection of the user's touch,automatically display a map with the touch screen display device, themap comprising traffic information and a route to a target destinationcorresponding to the EMS incident.
 14. The system of claim 12, whereinthe EMS navigation device is configured to begin a response timer basedon the detection of the user's touch.
 15. The system of claim 12,wherein the easy response button displays a nature of the EMS incidentand the location associated with the incident assignment.
 16. The systemof claim 12, wherein the easy response button displays a nature of theEMS incident.
 17. The system of claim 12, wherein the easy responsebutton displays the location associated with the incident assignment.18. The system of claim 12, wherein the EMS navigation device isconfigured to provide displayed information exclusive of the easyresponse button prior to the receipt of the incident assignment from thedispatcher.
 19. The system of claim 18, wherein the EMS navigationdevice is configured to automatically replace the information exclusiveof the easy response button with the easy response button in response tothe receipt of the incident assignment from the dispatcher.
 20. Thesystem of claim 18, wherein the EMS navigation device is configured toprovide the displayed information exclusive of the easy response buttonin response to a receipt of login information from the user of the EMSnavigation device.
 21. The system of claim 18, wherein the informationexclusive of the easy response button comprises one or more of unit crewinformation, dispatch information, a chat messaging button, and assignedincident information.
 22. The system of claim 21, wherein the chatmessaging button is configured to capture a user selection of the chatmessaging button and wherein, in response to the user selection, the EMSnavigation device is configured to provide information comprising atleast one text message sent to or received from at least one of thedispatcher and at least one other EMS unit.
 23. The system of claim 22,wherein, in response to a user selection of the at least one textmessage, the EMS navigation device is configured to provide a chatmessaging details screen.
 24. The system of claim 23, wherein the chatmessaging details screen provides at least one of a time the at leastone text message was sent, a sender of the at least one text message,and a full message text for the at least one text message.
 25. Thesystem of claim 21, wherein the chat messaging button is configured tocapture a user selection of the chat messaging button and wherein, inresponse to the user selection, the EMS navigation device is configuredto provide a compose button configured to provide an editor interfacefor chat messaging in response to a user selection of the composebutton.
 26. The system of claim 12, wherein the user's touch anywhere onthe easy response button comprises a single touch or tap.
 27. A systemfor emergency medical services (EMS) navigation, the system comprising:an EMS navigation device configured to receive an incident assignmentfrom a dispatcher remote from the EMS navigation device, the incidentassignment from the dispatcher corresponding to an EMS incident; and atouch screen display device communicably coupled to the EMS navigationdevice, the EMS navigation device being configured to, in response tothe receipt of the incident assignment from the dispatcher display onlyan easy response button with the touch screen display device, whereinthe easy response button captures only an acceptance of the incidentassignment, occupies an area as large as an entirety of the touch screendisplay device, and displays a time that has elapsed since the incidentassignment was received from the dispatcher, detect a user's touchanywhere on the easy response button on the touch screen display device,and update, in response to the detection of the user's touch anywhere onthe easy response button, a status of the system for EMS navigation toindicate that a user is en route to a location associated with theincident assignment.
 28. The system of claim 27, wherein the EMSnavigation device is configured to, based on the detection of the user'stouch, automatically display a map with the touch screen display device,the map comprising traffic information and a route to a targetdestination corresponding to the EMS incident.
 29. The system of claim27, wherein the EMS navigation device is configured to begin a responsetimer based on the detection of the user's touch.
 30. The system ofclaim 27, wherein the easy response button displays a nature of the EMSincident and the location associated with the incident assignment. 31.The system of claim 27, wherein the easy response button displays anature of the EMS incident.
 32. The system of claim 27, wherein the easyresponse button displays the location associated with the incidentassignment.
 33. The system of claim 27, wherein the EMS navigationdevice is configured to provide displayed information exclusive of theeasy response button prior to the receipt of the incident assignmentfrom the dispatcher.
 34. The system of claim 33, wherein the EMSnavigation device is configured to automatically replace the informationexclusive of the easy response button with the easy response button inresponse to the receipt of the incident assignment from the dispatcher.35. The system of claim 33, wherein the EMS navigation device isconfigured to provide the displayed information exclusive of the easyresponse button in response to a receipt of login information from theuser of the EMS navigation device.
 36. The system of claim 33, whereinthe information exclusive of the easy response button comprises one ormore of unit crew information, dispatch information, a chat messagingbutton, and assigned incident information.
 37. The system of claim 27,wherein the user's touch anywhere on the easy response button comprisesa single touch or tap.